1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to databases, and in particular using the database to manage communications between consumers and suppliers of products.
2. Description of the Related Technology
In spite of the many advances of the Information Revolution, the vast majority of modern commerce remains largely unchanged in regard to buyer-vendor visibility. The lack of transparency into one another's intentions or operating details forces the parties to base decisions on assumptions or incomplete information. Although widely accepted, this absence of real-time access to information leads to enormous inefficiencies throughout the economy. Consumers pay higher prices and get less than optimal products. Producers build, stock and ship products based on imprecise projections. Advertisers spend enormous sums on media with little ability to measure results. All parties suffer greatly from the lack of a system that offers bi-directional transparency between the supply and demand elements of the economy.